Those Lovely Moments
by SillyJily
Summary: From when Lily first find out she is expecting a little bundle of joy and on. James/Lily
1. Little Blue Potion

**Those Lovely Moments **

Chapter 1: Little Blue Potion

Lily Potter was a brave woman, through and through. She had fought Voldemort himself not once, but _twice_, once by herself and once with her husband, James. But on this cold, winter morning, Lily did not feel brave at all. She felt frightened. Thoroughly and properly scared in a way she never had been before. The simple potion in the cauldron bubbling beneath her was a seemingly innocent pale blue. The color of a cloudless, sunny sky, so rarely seen in Britain with it's typically dreary weather. The color of her favorite dress as a child, the one that had been a hand-me-down from her sister Petunia and clashed horribly with her vibrant red hair. The potion beneath her represented one undeniable fact;

She was pregnant.

Lily tried to recall back to when this could have happened, as she had tried to be careful in the span of her nearly two-year marriage. No single event sprung to her mind, but trying to pair the word careful with James Potter was laughable, so it could have been in a number of places. They did have their own house after all, and James had a nasty habit of getting a look in his eyes, a lustful, greedy look, that was always followed by an intense shag, no matter where they were. They would laugh about it, and she would pretend to be mad, but she secretly loved the spontaneity just as much as he did.

Back to the matter at hand, Lily didn't know what to do. She looked out the window to see flurries of snow floating to the ground. It was early Sunday morning on January the second, 1980. Lily had just kissed James goodbye on his way to work, and now regretted keeping the fact that she might be pregnant from him. There was no denying it now, as the potion was never wrong, proving that Lily had a tiny baby inside her.

That thought brought her up short. A baby. Lily was going to be a mother. Tears pricked her eyes, and she looked down at her still-flat stomach, imagining a life growing in there, and felt a warm glow. How could she have been scared over this miracle? Sure, the timing was awful with the war going on, but it was done and Lily would see it through and end up with a warm bundle in her arms, a little piece of her and James. _James._ How was she going to tell him? He would surely be as happy as she was, right? Lily's stomach started churning and she vomited in the conveniently close toilet. Lily had been doing that for the past week and now realized it was not a stomach bug, as she had previously thought, but morning sickness.

She was being silly, of course James would be happy. He had wanted children since the moment they said 'I do', only Lily's constant reminders of the war keeping him at bay. She still needed a way to break the news, so she set off to begin an extravagant dinner. Right after she brushed her teeth.

It had been a long day for James Potter, with an attack on a muggle village killing 20 and 6 seriously injured, all the handiwork of Voldemort's cronies. He had seen a little girl lying in the streets, with tight blonde curls splayed around her head, and a small doll clutched in her hands. She couldn't have been more than 5, and her life was over. Even as an auror, who saw this type of thing every day, it still got to him. He just wanted to go home to his beautiful wife, possibly shag her senseless, then sleep and start the whole cycle over.

He Apparated right outside his doorstep, and swung open the door boisterously and yelled, "Honey, I'm home!" as he had seen on some muggle TV show Lily made him watch.

"In the kitchen! Wash up, I'll have dinner on the table in a mo'." Lily yelled, her voice floating over to him.

James quickly washed his hands and took off his cloak, then snuck into the kitchen. He just stood in the doorframe, watching his wife cook something that smelled delicious. Her back was to him, letting James admire the extremely nice view. He moved forward and snaked his arms around her waist, murmuring in her ear, "I missed you."

He started kissing her neck as she giggled and sighed, a smile dancing across her lips.

"Go sit down, I've been working on this all day and I will not let it burn."

James still found it amusing that Lily insisted on using muggle cooking appliances, insisting "they're much simpler, and I've been using them my whole life." He sauntered over to the table and took a seat, reclining and stretching, trying to work out the kinks after a long day of work.

Lily took out her wand and tapped it on the plates, causing them to fly to the table and arrange themselves, along with the forks and knives beside them. She sighed and said to James, "Have I mentioned how much I love magic? Even after eight years, it's the little things that amaze me."

A crooked smile filled James' face, and he was further reminded how much he loved Lily. Her appreciation for everything and everyone never ceased to astound him. She was the most caring, loving person he could imagine and he still had no idea how he even remotely deserved her.

"So, how was work? Anything new?" Lily asked as she took her place across from James, setting the food in between them. Red roast beef, creamy mashed potatoes, and a medley of vegetables lay in front of him, making his mouth water and his stomach give an almighty growl.

"Another attack, muggle Village outside of Camden Town. Twenty killed. A little girl was found alone in the street." James eyes were downcast and sorrow weighed him down. Lily reached across the table and took his hand, squeezing it and giving him a reassuring smile. James cleared his throat then started piling things on his plate. Through a mouthful of beef, James said,"How was your day?"

Lily bit back what seemed to be a smile, puzzling James, but she just said, "Oh, nothing special. Too quiet without you. Sundays are just boring around here." Lily, being an Unspeakable, didn't have to work weekends, unlike James' hectic auror schedule.

They sat in companionable silence, James devouring the delectable meal.

"Save some room, I made treacle tart too, your favorite." Lily's eyes were almost glowing, and her nose kept twitching, a sign that she had a secret.

"Is there something I'm missing? You seem to be in an exceptionally good mood, and you're buttering me up. What's going on?" Curiosity filled James, wondering what she could possibly be keeping from him.

Lily opened her mouth to say something, then abruptly shut it and stood up, racing to the bathroom and emptying the meal she had just eaten into the toilet.

"Lily, what's wrong? Are you sick? Do you need to see a healer?" His curiosity turned to worry as soon as he saw his wife's form bent over the toilet, and he went to hold her hair back. She continued to heave until she had nothing more in her stomach and sat back against the wall and closed her eyes.

"I'm pregnant."

Shock rang through James system, rendering him paralyzed, trying to process what she had just said. Pregnant. He has a pregnant wife. Before Lily could say anymore, he lifted her up and swung her around, whooping for joy.

"We're having a baby!" James shouted to the high hills, running around, waltzing through the house with Lily in his arms, laughing so hard tears streamed down her face.

"Put me down, I'm getting dizzy." James instantly stopped moving and gently placed her on the ground, worrying if he had harmed her.

"Oh God Lils I'm sorry, are you okay?" Concern laced his tone, causing Lily to beam at him, radiating delight.

"I'm fine, just a bit dizzy from spinning. So you're happy about this?" Although her fears had been mostly alleviated, she had to make sure.

"Happy is not a big enough word. Elated, jubilant, ecstatic, maybe, I need a better vocabulary to express how happy I am right now." He pressed a tentative hand to Lily's abdomen, and smiled. "Lily, there's a baby in there. Our baby. A little life, growing as we speak. I've never been this happy in my life. This may even trump our wedding day, but only because I was dead scared for half the day that you wouldn't show up."

Lily grabbed his head between her hands, looked him dead in the eyes and said, "James Potter, as if I could ever leave you at the altar. You've had my heart for too long. You may have driven me mad for the first few years we knew each other, but you wore me down, and stopped being such a prat. I love you, and I always will. And now we have a family of our very own," she placed her hands over his on her stomach, "and we have each other. Always."

James bent down and kissed her chastely, loving her more in this moment than he thought he ever could.

"I really have to brush my teeth, meals taste much better going down than coming up." Lily said with a slight blush. James just looked down at the beautiful woman he held in his arms and smiled. He picked her up again, much more gently this time, and carried her up to their room, setting her down in front of the bathroom door.

"I love you,'' said James reverently.

"As I you," Lily claimed with a small smile and went to brush her teeth.

James just sat down on the bed and thought about what just happened. Lily came out to find him deep in thought, and pounced on him with a giggle. "So, _dad,_ what'cha thinking about?"

"Dad. Wow. I'm gonna be a dad," breathed James with no small amount of wonder. He started wondering if he would be a good dad, if his kid would like him at all, and a frown fell upon his face.

"James, what's wrong?" Lily had lost the joking tease to her tone immediately as she saw distress on her spouse's face.

"What if it doesn't like me? I don't know how to be a dad, I've never tried before."

Lily looked at him in wonder, as this was the only time she had ever seen James Potter doubt himself. "Look at me James. Our child will love you unconditionally, just as you will it. As for never trying before,that's typically the case before you have children. You are the funniest, kindest, most gentle man I have ever known, and it will be impossible for our child to have anything but pure adoration for you."

"I am being a bit silly, aren't I? But God Lily, we're going to be _parents._ The great James Potter, tied down with a family. And you know what?" James leaned in closer, "I couldn't be happier."


	2. Thoroughly Pissed and Couldn

**Chapter 2: Thoroughly Pissed and Couldn't Be Happier**

Lily and James were laying wrapped around each other, marveling over the fact that Lily is pregnant, when James shot right out of bed, knocking Lily to the side and sprinted downstairs.

With a few choice words aimed in her husbands direction, Lily followed after to see what caused him to so abruptly run away. She went downstairs to find James' arse high in the air, his head leaning into the fireplace.

"SIrius Black!"

A very lazy and tired looking head appeared in the embers, and an even more exhausted voice said, "Will you hush up? There is no need to yell, I saw you an hour ago."

"Lily's pregnant!" James excitedly yelled, despite Sirius telling him explicitly not to.

The silence after James exclamation was short-lived, as Sirius launched himself out of the fireplace directly into James, knocking him back, narrowly missing Lily.

"You sly dog, you knocked your wife up! Didn't think you had it in ya, Prongsie." Sirius was on top of James, pinning him down, both with huge smiles on their faces. SIrius jumped off him and turned to Lily, a playfully sad look on his face, "And Lily! Does this mean that our affair must come to an end? I simply wouldn't feel right sleeping with a woman who was round with my best friends child. Oh how I will miss you writhing around, claiming how much better I am than James-" He was cut off as James lunged at him and they started wrestling, with Lily watching on with a fond smile.

"Get up you two, and Sirius, I still haven't gotten a hug," Lily announced after several minutes of the pair mock-fighting, as if they were two little boys, not fully grown men.

Before Lily could even react, Sirius picked her up in a huge hug, lifting her off the ground and spinning her around, not unlike James when he had first found out she was pregnant. "Put me down, you're making me dizzy!" Lily tried to scold Sirius but she was too happy to put any real force into the words. With a laugh, Sirius placed her back on the ground and kissed her on the cheek.

"Congratulations, to the both of you. You know I thought you were getting a little fatter Lils, but I didn't want to say anything. Ow!" He exclaimed, after being smacked rather roughly on the arm by an annoyed redhead. "I was only joking!"

"Sorry, hormones,'' Lily very unapologetically responded.

"James, you are not gonna make it through these nine moths. She'll kill you before that thing get's born."

"Hey! That's my kid, not a thing! And I will absolutely make it, I will simply continue being the amazing husband that I naturally am," James claimed with a pompous air. Lily started snickering behind her hand, a poor attempt at covering it up.

"Whatever Prongs, but I'll be ready to teach that kid all the stuff he needs to know that he can't from his father, like how to play Quidditch and pick up girls, all the important stuff."

"And if it's a girl?" Lily asked, choosing to ignore the fact that Sirius was already planning on how to corrupt her baby.

"Then no boy will come within a hundred meters of her, and any that do will face the consequences," James replied immediately without a second thought, placing a protective hand over his wife's stomach as if to protect his little girl from any harm. Sirius nodded in agreement, cracking his knuckles as if imagining anyone going near a little girl he hand't even met yet, but felt protective of anyway. Lily laughed at their sudden change in tone, pleased that their child has such a protective family already.

"I believe this calls for a celebratory pint! In your current condition, Lily, I'm afraid you can't participate in the childish tomfoolery that is bound to happen tonight, so I will take James off your hands and you can relax, knowing that your husband is getting absolutely plastered in honor of your child," Proclaimed Sirius, already dragging James towards the door.

"Just bring him back in one piece, or you'll have me to deal with!" The fiery redhead called after him, receiving a salute from both of them before they apparated away.

''To James and Lily!"

The chorus rang through the Marauders as the four raised their glasses to clink together in a gesture as old as time.

"Say goodbye to whatever freedom you have left Prongsie, 'cuz ones Lily pops that kid out, life will never be the same," Sirius announced to James, shaking his head as if there couldn't be a worse fate.

"Maybe so, but I can't seem to wipe the smile off my face anyway," The soon-to-be father replied, indeed wearing the widest grin any of them had seen since Lily had first agreed to go on a date with him.

"Couldn't be happier for you James. Feel terrible for that kid though," Remus added, nursing his Guinness. The last day of the full moon had been the night before, and he could definitely feel the effects.

"Yeah, imagine if it's unfortunate enough to get your brains?" Chimed in Peter Pettigrew, an unimpressive, round man.

"Or that ridiculous hair," Added Sirius.

"Please, who was Head Boy? Me. Who got more girls than anyone else here? Me." Retorted James.

"Like you ever got more girls than I did. You stopped 3 years ago James, and I've kept going," Sirius threw back.

"And we all know Remus should have gotten Head Boy," Peter added.

"Aren't you guys supposed to be showering me with praise, telling me to enjoy my last moments of being free?" announced James, "Or are we going to continue Potter-Bashing?"

"Fine, fine, you were the most handsome, smartest bloke in all of Hogwarts. Now I need to go wash out my mouth for spouting such bullshit," proclaimed Sirius.

"Oh shut it, I'm gonna be a dad!"

This continued on, with everyone picking on James and intermittent declarations of impending parenthood, until they were all thoroughly pissed.

"A-and you know what? My kid, m-my kid, is gonna be such a stud, he'll need to carry around a stick to beat the girls off!" Slurred a thoroughly inebriated James.

"But, won't he always have a stick? Isn't a wand a stick?" An equally drunk Sirius replied.

"Shut up, lemme imagine my kid."

They were walking down the street, Remus and Peter having already floo'd home, both too drunk to apparate.

"Fine, fine, I just hope she doesn't get Lily's temper." They both shuddered at that, having been at the wrong end off an Evans tantrum on more than one occasion.

They walked up the steps to Lily and James' house, both laughing for no apparent reason. They burst in the door, falling over each other in hysterics. Lily walked out of the kitchen holding a bowl of ice cream and a spoon, an amused smile on her face.

"You boys seem to have had fun."

"Lily! Guess what? You're having a baby!" James stumbled toward her, falling to the ground at her feet and continued to laugh, as if telling her that she is pregnant was the funniest thing he has ever heard in his life.

''So I've heard. Up to bed you, you have work in the morning," Lily bent over to pick James up by the shoulder, keeping her ice cream in her other hand. "Sirius, you're not apparating and I'm not gonna let you walk home, so get comfy on the couch,'' The witch ordered them about, entirely in her element.

"Yes ma'am," Sirius hiccuped before staggering over to Lily and gave her a sloppy kiss on the cheek, "Good job Lils, you'll be a great mom." She offered him a warm smile, the pregnancy glow showing through."Thanks Sirius. Now, if you're good, I'll even sober you up with a nice potion in the morning." He had already passed out on the couch, his legs still on the floor with his torso twisted into the pillows.

"Ice cream for me?" Great, big puppy dog eyes were gazing up into Lily's green ones, imploring her to give him her tasty treat.

"We'll share. Now, c'mon I'm pregnant, I can't do any heavy lifting and you are most definitely heavy," the redhead steadied him while he made his way up the stairs, jumping onto their bed and waggled his eyebrows.

"I think I'll need a refresher on how exactly that baby was made, it's all a bit blurry, and I'm a bit blurry,'' James' words still slurred, though with a bit more clarity in his eyes as he took in his wife's rather revealing camisole and shorts.

"You'll have to ask Sirius how it happened, he was the one who pinned me to the wall," Lily teased, already walking over to her adoring husband.

A growl escaped James' chest and he grabbed his wife, knocking the ice cream bowl out of her hands, letting it tumble to the floor where it lay forgotten for the rest of the night.


	3. A State of Undress

**Edited** I reread it and saw that I accidentally uploaded the original unedited vernon. Whoops.

**Chapter 3: A State of Undress **

Lily Potter waddled through the front door of her little house, dropped her coat and plopped down into the nearest chair. At four months pregnant, Lily was beginning to show and people had taken notice. She could barely walk through the halls of the Ministry without someone stopping her to feel and coo at her belly. Lily would have been annoyed if it wasn't the only time she's seen people smile freely in this endless war. Plus, Lily couldn't stop smiling and rubbing her protruding stomach herself, so she couldn't blame anyone.

"Lily, you home?" James called from upstairs.

"Down here," Lily called back.

The sound of James bounding down the stairs filled the house. His enthusiasm filled the air, and you could practically hear his excited smile. He dropped down next to his exhausted wife, leaning down to give her a loving kiss, and placed a hand on her ever-growing belly. "How's our little guy doing in there?"

"Fairly well, though he seems to like the weirdest things; for lunch I wanted nothing more than broccoli and chocolate. Actually, I could go for some more now.." Lily's eyes trailed to the kitchen, thinking of all the disgusting combinations that suddenly sounded delicious.

"Before you eat possibly lethal combinations of food, I have something to show you upstairs," James helped his beautiful bride to her feet, walking behind her with his hands still over her stomach.

"What did you do upstairs? Did you and Sirius put another hole in the wall?"

"That was one time!" exclaimed James, "Who knew that you could actually go _through _a wall if you hit it hard enough? We fixed it right after anyways. No, I did something very good this time."

They continued up the stairs, Lily wondering what her husband had done this time, and James practically bouncing in excitement.

"Close your eyes, I want you to get the full effect," James reached forward and placed his hands over a very reluctant Lily's eyes, "Just keep walking, I won't let you fall." Lily moved forward, now very curious as to what James had done. Possibilities sprang to mind, each more unlikely than the last. She felt the floor change from a sturdy hardwood to a plush carpet beneath her feet as they entered a new room.

"Open your eyes," whispered James, taking his hands off her eyes, carefully watching his wife's face.

The room they were in was a soft, pale yellow, with windows letting the late sun casting a golden light on the room. A large crib dominated the area, with a mobile consisting of dragons slowly turning above it. A changing table was against the wall to Lily's left, a large dresser and mirror to her right. In the far corner sat an old wooden rocking chair, overflowing with a variety of plush toys.

"Oh James," breathed Lily, "it's perfect. Our baby will love their room," She turned to James, who was bursting with pride at a job well done. She pulled him down and gave him a toe-curling, fantasy-fueling, lingering kiss that left them both breathless.

"Oh!" Lily's hands dropped to her stomach, a startled expression on her face.

"Lilly what's wrong? Is the baby okay?" James was suddenly frantic, worrying that there might be something wrong with his suddenly perfect life.

"I-it kicked. The baby kicked," An amazed expression covered her face.

"Really? Just now?"

"No, two days ago. Yes, now!" Lily snapped at James' dimwitted question. She instantly regretted it when she saw his wounded expression, and took his hand, placing it on her stomach where the baby had kicked. A small pressure met his hand, as if the baby was saying hello.

James looked shocked, staring at the place where something had definitely just moved. James got down on his knees in front of Lily's stomach, placing both hands over her abdomen. A small pressure jabbed against his hand again. James looked up at Lily, and awestruck look on his face. Lily was staring down lovingly at James, tears in her eyes at his amazement of the little life that they created.

"Lily, that's our baby there."

"Yes it is," Lily responded.

James looked at the bump in his hands, and reverently placed a kiss to the exposed skin. "Hey there, I'm your daddy, and I love you very, very much." A sharp jab, the biggest one yet, pressed back where James had kissed as if to say "I love you too."

Lily went down on her knees, now at eye-level with James. They just looked at each other for a moment, hazel gazing into emerald, before they began kissing passionately, both so full of love that they had to share it with the other. Buttons came undone, zippers flew down, until they were both lying on the floor in nothing but their underwear. Just as James moved his hands behind Lily's back, the door downstairs burst open with a bang.

"Hello? James? Lily? I know you're here, quit shagging, you got company!" Sirius bounded up the stairs in search for his friends, finding them in the nursery scrambling to put on clothes. He leaned on the door frame and let out a wolf whistle. ''Damn Lils, pregnancy sure does agree with you. Or should I say, certain _parts_ of you."

"Sirius Orion Black, get out of here now!" Lily screeched while James yelled, "Oi, that's my wife you're staring at!"

"Oh please, like I haven't already seen it all. I did share a room with James for seven years, and you two were not very good at silencing or locking charms around your bed our seventh year. By the way Lily, I really miss those black stockings." Sirius had to duck at the onslaught of stuffed animals being thrown his way, as two scantily clothed Potters chased after him through the house.

"Sirius, you prat, get back here!" James raced after his friend, abandoning all modesty and not even trying to cover up. He eventually caught up to Sirius in the front hall, tackling him to the ground and pinning him down. They were rolling around, fighting each other, all while Sirius started listing everything he had seen or heard in their seventh year at Hogwarts when the charms had been done in a rush.

"Lily has some rather nice lingerie, I was very impressed with our esteemed Head Girl. Not nearly as prudish as I assumed. And boy, does she have a set of lungs! I mean, I've made her scream plenty of times, but you weren't half bad mate," Sirius goaded James, continually listing every perverted thought that came to mind (and that was an awful lot.)

"Sirius Black if you do not stop right now I will tell James about Bellatrix in our sixth year!" Lily fumed, more angry about the ruined moment with James than what Sirius had said.

Sirius instantly stopped struggling, all color draining from his face and he profusely apologized to both of them.

"Bellatrix? As in your cousin Bellatrix? What did you do Padfoot?" James abandoned the fight as well in favor of coaxing the story out of his best friend.

"Nothing happened, and Lily won't say what didn't happen, right Lily?" Sirius implored the redhead not to say anything.

"For now," said Lily ominously. Always good to have blackmail on Sirius Black.

Sirius let out a sigh and relaxed, grateful to put off that reveal to another day. James continued to look back and forth between his wife and best friend, feeling incredibly out of the loop.

"Hey Sirius, give me your hand." Lily reached out for the animagus' hand and placed it on her belly. Sirius gave her an odd look and opened his mouth to question what the hell she was doing, before he quickly shut it, having felt something move under his hand.

"Merlin Lily, you got something living in there! Maybe it'll burst out of your chest like that movie you brought us to last year. What was it again? Alien? Ya, that's it, you got an alien in there!"

Lily immediately smacked Sirius, then said very clearly, "My child is not an alien! Only you, Sirius, could take something so beautiful and make it gross!"

"I'm just kidding Lils, it's great what you got there. A little baby. You guys are nuts for popping out kids so young, but whatever floats your boat," Sirius amended his earlier statement to prevent a fiery, hormonal redhead from hexing off his bits of which he's grown very fond of.

"Well it wasn't exactly planned, but I wouldn't change it for anything,'' James walked over and placed a kiss to Lily's forehead before wrapping his arms around her waist, placing his hands over her belly.

"Yeah yeah, whatever. As much as I am enjoying the view, you two wanna maybe put on come clothes?"

James and Lily both looked down at themselves, having forgotten that they weren't dressed for company, however loosely that term applied to Sirius. They both ran upstairs, Sirius' laughter following them.

A/N: This was a really fast update, thanks to those of you favoriting, following, and especially reviewing. Thank you so much! I didn't hunk anyone would even read this, let alone like it.

And just to clear up any confusion, I did research (a bit) and babies do typically start moving around 16- 20 weeks (4-5 months) and others can feel it at about 16-24 weeks (although rarely at 16 weeks.) Anything extraordinary can be chalked up to it being Harry freakin' Potter.


	4. Broomsticks and Windows

**Chapter 4: Broomsticks and Windows**

"I wouldn't ask this of you if it wasn't absolutely necessary, but I'm afraid it is."

The wizened face of Albus Dumbledore seemed to age as the meeting progressed, showing how much he resents his assumed roll of the main authority figure. He never wanted to be turned into a general, but that's what he was. A general sending two soldiers into the front lines, jeopardizing their safety with no guarantee of survival.

"We understand, and we'll do it. Right James?" Sirius looked to his suspiciously quiet friend, wondering what's taking him so long to say yes.

"Lily," James responded.

Oh. In two syllables, there was a whole explanation to Sirius' best friends hesitation. James couldn't go out and do whatever anymore, he has a wife who is having his kid in just about two months.

James seemed to have an internal debate before heaving a big sigh, squaring his shoulders and looking Dumbledore right in the eye, "I accept."

"I wish there were a better way, but I thank the both of you for doing this. Please return here at 6 o'clock tonight, then we shall proceed from there," The dismissal was obvious, and the two of them left the Headmaster's office.

"Just another adventure for us, right Prongs?" Sirius said, trying to lighten the oppressive mood.

"Yeah, another adventure," James looked far beyond his twenty years, worry lines creasing his eyes.

"Head home, tell Lily I'll see her tomorrow, and I'll be expecting a victory feast."

James gave a weary smile and patted his friend on the back, then turned to the floo and headed home.

James tumbled out of the fireplace, exhausted despite the early hour. Lily waddled over to her husband and helped him up to the best of her ability, and placed a firm kiss on his lips.

"Home early? How'd your meeting with Dumbledore go?"

James took a deep breath, then gestured for them both to sit on the sofa. "Lily, Dumbledore gave Sirius and I a mission."

"That's good, isn't it? That's the whole reason we signed up, help end this whole mess. What do you have to do, find a new Death Eater and turn him around, bring him to the good side?" Lily started poking him in the ribs, laughing slightly.

"No. Sirius and I are going to where Voldemort is stationed to spy on a meeting they're having tonight," James was giving it to her straight, like ripping off a bandage, "Every person in attendance has to take an unbreakable vow to never reveal what they hear. We have to gather information and find out what's going on."

Lily looked horrified and devastated. She knew how dangerous this mission would be, how likely it was that James wouldn't make it. "No, James, don't do it! Have someone else, _anyone_ else do it, just not you!" Lily was almost screaming, and she reached out to hold James, to keep him close while she still could. James held her close, wrapping his arms around her.

"It has to be us, Dumbledore asked for us specifically," murmured James, "He said we're the best at sneaking about, with all the experience from school." A small smile graced his lips, memories of simpler days coming back to him.

Lily leaned away, taking James hands in her own and looking him in the eye, "What about Remus or Peter, they could do it, they snuck around the castle just as much as you."

"It's a full moon, and you know Peter isn't as fast or as good of a fighter. It has to be us."

"But none of them have a family to come back to," she took James' hands and placed them over her stomach, "I need you to come back. We need you." A strong kick pressed against James' hand as if to agree.

"Lily, if there are any other choices, I'm open, but it needs to be done. Like you said, we signed up to end this mess. And I will come back for you. For both of you," James leaned down and placed a kiss over her belly, rubbing the rather large bump lovingly.

Lily wiped away the tears forming in her eyes, knowing he was right and that he had to go, but hating every bit of it. It wasn't fair that James had to leave them when everything was perfect. They seemed to be in their own bubble of happiness, the war a distant problem, not even concerning them. But it did concern them, Lily especially.

"What time do you have to go?"

"I have to go to Dumbledore's office at 6 tonight."

6 o'clock. Eight short hours left to be together. "Well, let's make the most of it 'til then."

As the clock rung 6, a very disheveled James Potter stumbled out of the fireplace and onto the carpet of Albus Dumbledore's office, followed by an equally disheveled, very pregnant Lily Potter.

"I'm glad you're here James, and it's always lovely to see you Lily," Dumbledore rose from his desk to greet the Potters, who were smoothing their mussed hair and straightening their clothes. There was very little mystery as to what they had just been up to._ Ah, to be young, _Dumbledore thought kindly.

"Professor, good to see you, though the circumstances could be better," Lily glared slightly at Dumbledore. She knew he was just doing what was necessary, but she needed somewhere to direct her anger and he was the best choice.

"Yes, they could be. I truly regret the necessity of this, but it could provide vital information to end the war. I will fully inform you once Mr. Black joins us."

At that moment, Sirius stumbled in, looking like he had gotten dressed in a hurry and his hair mussed as if someone had run their fingers through it.

"I know, I know, I'm late, I'm sorry. Let's get this show on the road, shall we?"

They began to discus what was to happen tonight. Essentially, James and Sirius would sneak onto the grounds, listen in on the conversation, then come back safe and sound. Easier said than done.

They all rose from their seats, a heavy air surrounding them all. Even Sirius understood that this was dangerous, the real deal, and was smart enough to be quiet for the moment.

Lily turned to James, and put her hands on either side of his head, then leaned forward and said, "Now, you better be back in time for breakfast in the morning. I'll make eggs and bacon, ready for when you come back to us."

James turned his hand, kissing her palm lovingly, caressing her hand, "I promise. I have something rather important to come back to, you know," he placed both hands on her stomach, before leaning down and giving the bump a kiss. "You be good, alright? I'll be back, so you keep mommy company. I love you." Several kicks in succession, some making Lily wince, were the response to James, who smiled at his wife. "I'll be right back." And with that, Sirius and him headed out of the castle, ready for another adventure.

"I'm sure that you are all very curious as to why I have called this meeting, and why it is of the utmost secrecy," The serpent-like man glided behind the highest-ranking of his followers, each of them stiffening as he passes, "and I will tell you. I have fed that old fool Dumbledore information about tonight's meeting, just enough to peak his interests and send spies to watch us." Voldemort flicked his wand, opening the windows to reveal a frozen James Potter and Sirius Black on broomsticks, hovering right outside. "Ah, Mr Black, Mr Potter, how nice that you could join us."

The two men were visibly panicking, or at least as much as someone frozen could.

"I think I'll have some fun with you two."

Lily had never slept worse in her life. It was nearly dawn, and she had barely slept a wink. How could she? Her husband was in terrible danger, and she had a very restless human moving around inside her. She decided to give up trying to rest, and decided to start the breakfast that she had promised James.

Just as she was scooping the eggs out of the pan, there was a knock at the door. It was far too early for a social call, and James would never knock, so Lily edged her way to the door, wand firmly in hand. She slowly opened the door to reveal a weary, grim-faced Remus Lupin.

"Oh Merlin, no," Lily suddenly needed the doorframe for support, assuming the worst.

"He's alive Lily, but we don't know how long for," Remus stepped through the door and reached an arm to Lily, leading her to the living room to sit down.

"What happened?" Lily tried to be sensible, listen to reason and get all the information before freaking out.

"They were supposed to call in, send some sign that they were okay, every hour. They were fine until around midnight, then we received no information for hours. At about four this morning, we got an owl." Remus held out a note with neat, precise handwriting. With trembling fingers, Lily reached out and began to read:

_To the Order of the Phoenix, _

_Oh how easy you are to manipulate. A simple phrase or two, and you predictably send your members to spy, as if it were that easy. _

_I have Mr Black and Mr Potter, and I plan to have quite a bit of fun with them. Maybe I'll be nice and give them back to you._

_Piece. _

_By. _

_Piece. _

_-Lord Voldemort _

The paper slipped from Lily's grasp, her vision going blurry and her hands shaking. She suddenly doubled over, an intense pain blooming from her abdomen. She cried out and slumped to the ground, while Remus tried to do something, anything to help his friend, but Lily fell to the floor, succumbing to the sweet release of unconsciousness.

It had seemed so easy at first. That should have been the first clue.

Things were going so well, James had come up with the idea to use brooms and stay outside the house, and Sirius found a small hole in the wards, able to sneak in without alerting anyone. They had floated in the air for a few hours, just waiting for something to happen. Then the meeting had started, both of them listening in rapt attention. Before they knew something was even wrong, they were frozen in midair, unable to scream, to whimper, to blink. The rest was a blur of kicks and _cruciatus_ cursesthat left them achy and sore. Now, they were in a dungeon, with no idea what to do or how to get out.

"This is not good."

"No shit Sirius. We have to find a way out of here," James was pacing the small room, ignoring the searing pain that went through him with every step.

"Got any plans, 'cuz I'm all ears."

James inspected the bars, sensing the magic coursing through them. An idea suddenly struck him, a crazy stupid idea that almost definitely wouldn't work. "Hey Padfoot, what do you know about magic dungeons from that crazy old family of yours?"

"Only that they were a good place to torture innocent people and that they are impossible to get out of."

"By magical means at least."

Sirius looked puzzled, having no idea what his possibly crazy friend was talking about.

"These bars are meant to hold back any spell you throw at them. No bludgeoning hex could even dent these," James waited for Sirius' agreement before continuing, "But what about brute force? Do it the old-fashioned, muggle-way?"

"Uh, James, unless you have inhuman strength and I don't know about it, I don't think you can just break metal bars."

"But neither of us are always human, are we?" James winked at Sirius before transforming into a beautiful stag, the horns scraping against the low ceiling.

Understanding dawned on Sirius, who then smiled widely and transformed into a large, black dog.

The two animals, rather cramped in the tight space, looked at each other before nodding and running full speed at the bars, knocking them off their hinges in one go. The noise was deafening, sure to alert someone of the break-out. The two marauders didn't wait to find out, and sprinted toward the exit, heading up the stairs, knocking down the other door to reveal a very surprised Narcissa Malfoy, definitely not expecting to see a fully grown stag and unnaturally large black dog running through her house. The dog bound over to her then licked the side of her face, from jaw to hairline, before giving her the dog equivalent of a grin, then rushing out the front door, closely followed by the stag who appeared to be.. laughing? Narcissa was extremely confused, but rushed down the stairs to find empty, destroyed cells.

All the way from the edge of the property, the two animals clearly heard a female voice scream, "Sirius Black, I'll get you for that kiss!" James and Sirius transformed back into themselves, both howling with laughter.

"You know you just kissed your cousin?" James wiped the tears from his eyes, just happy to be free.

"It was totally worth it, did you see her face?"

"I won't forget it anytime soon. C'mon Padfoot, let's go home."

James', well, _everything_ hurt, but instead of going to a healer, he headed home to have breakfast with Lily, just as he promised.

"Honey, I'm home!" James burst through the door, as he always did, looking to scoop his wife off her feet and revel in their happiness, their safety ensured for one more day. He hurried up the stairs, to find an empty, unmade bed. All the other upstairs rooms were empty, even the nursery which Lily frequently sat in, just rubbing her belly, smiling serenely. "Lily? Where are you?" James was slowly becoming panicked, extremely uncomfortable with the silence of the house. Lily would have run headlong into James, as she always did when he came back from doing something dangerous or stupid, or frequently both. When James walked into the kitchen, the sight that met him made his stomach drop to his knees. Cooked eggs were scattered across the stovetop with the spatula next to it, and packaged sausages were half-open on the counter. The kitchen clearly showed a rushed exit, or a sudden stop.

"James!" Sirius' voice burst out of the fireplace, urgency lacing his tone.

"Sirius, what's wrong?"

"James, it's Lily, I'm at St. Mungos now-" before the sentence could even be finished, James threw a handful of powder in the fire and tackled Sirius, both of the falling back in a sterile, white room of St. Mungos.

"Where is she?"

"She's in room 209 but James-" Again, James didn't let him finish speaking and rushed off to find his wife.

201, 203, 205, 207, where the hell was 209?! James felt ill, he just knew something terrible had happened. Had she been attacked? Was she okay? Was the baby okay? All these questions raced through his mind as he finally reached the room with the little plaque reading 209. Remus was in a chair next to the bed, his head in his hands, shoulders slumped in defeat. Oh god, no. She has to be alive, Lily can't be dead. James looked to the bed, expecting to find it empty, but instead found a vibrant red sprawled across the pillow, and a slightly flushed, sleeping Lily. _She's alive, oh thank Merlin, she's alive. _James could have collapsed right there in relief, but clearly something had happened, or they wouldn't be in this place.

"James, thank Merlin you're alive," Remus looked up at his friends arrival and strode over to firmly hug James, clapping his hand on his back in a universal male greeting.

"Remus, what happened?" James looked desperately at his wife's still form, the only movement the slow rise and fall of her chest.

"You and Sirius stopped sending messages, then Voldemort sent us a letter. I gave it to Lily, and she assumed the worst. She bent over, blacked out, and I rushed her here."

"Is the baby…?" James couldn't finish, couldn't utter the possibility that he would never hold his son or daughter.

"They're not sure yet, but he's still alive. It couldn't handle the stress, and Lily was so distraught…. it didn't look good at all at first, but it's better now. They thought she might go into labor, but managed to hold it off."

James sat down heavily, wondering when everything had gone to shit. Yesterday the world was perfect and happy, his kid was coming soon, Lily was still beautiful and amazing, and he still had the best friends anyone could ask for. Now, he hurt everywhere, his wife was in a hospital bed, and he may never get to see his baby.

"They say it looks good James, she just needs time. She'll take maternity leave early, stay on bed rest for awhile, then she'll be up and moving around, taking care of that kid of yours."

"Thank you Remus, I'm glad you were there. Not many others would have kept a level head, and I can never thank you enough for that," James looked up at Remus, sincerity filling every word. Remus just nodded, then they both looked to Lily. It was bizarre to see her so still. Even in her sleep Lily kicked and turned, and was a huge blanket hog. Here, she was lying still on her back, her stomach tenting the sheet and her arms laying still by her side.

"What happened to her?" James was just staring at his wife, waiting for her to pop up and call him a prat.

"Her body is under enough stress as it is with the pregnancy, and when she added more stress to it, she couldn't take it. She'll be fine James, she should wake up soon," Remus put his hand on his friend's shoulder, looked once more at Lily, then walked from the room, giving them privacy.

James leaned over and grabbed Lily's hand staring at her face, willing her to wake up. "Oh Lily, I'm so sorry."

"James? 's that you?" a very sleepy Lily opened her eyes, looking around the room for her husband.

"Lily!'' Before the witch could even take a breath she was engulfed in a bear hug, practically lifted off the bed.

"Potter, let go, I can' breathe."

James quickly released, before smirking and saying, "You're a Potter too, you know."

"Oh shut it," Lily smiled beautifully at James, then smacked him as hard as she could.

"Ow! What the hell was that for?"

"Don't you ever scare me like that again! I thought you were dead!" Lily grabbed him by the shirt collar and yanked him towards her, kissing him passionately, bringing him closer and closer until he was on top of her, a very willing participant. He began lowering himself but then hit her belly, causing them both to laugh.

"Bit easier when this wasn't here," James laid down next to her, and placed a kiss on her forehead.

"Just a bit. Did anything… happen to her?" Lily worriedly placed her hands over her belly, praying her baby was okay.

"Or him. And no, our baby is perfectly fine," He spread his hand over Lily's abdomen, feeling the life pulse beneath it.

"Oi, there are kids around, no shagging in the hospital, especially with the door open," Sirius appeared in the doorway, looking better than he had before, clearly having washed up.

"We're married, we can do whatever the hell we want, now get out," James threw a pillow at Sirius who deftly dodged it, stepping further into the room.

"Evans, how's that kid doing?"

"Just fine, thank you very much, still kicking like a maniac," Lily reached out for Sirius' hand and placed it where the kicking was the most persistent.

"Man, I'll never get used to that. You have a person in there!" Sirius was just staring at his hand in wonder, feeling the little pressure against his hand.

Lily laughed at Sirius' astute observation, "Yes I do, thanks for noticing."

A male healer poked his head in, smiling at the warm scene he saw. "Mrs Potter? You're free to go now, you just need to sign some paperwork at the front desk."

James popped off the bed, ignoring his protesting muscles, and offered his hand to help Lily up. "Come on, Mrs Potter, let's go home."

**A/N: **Sorry the update took so long, I wanted to post this on Halloween put my internet was down, thanks to the lovely hurricane. Plus this chapter kicked my ass, I just had trouble writing it and I don't really like the flow of it. At all. But, it's written, and I'm sending it out into the world. Feel free to leave a review, I'll love you forever.


	5. Spilled Pudding

**Chapter 5: Spilled Pudding**

Lily Evans loved to dance, especially when no one was around. Dancing like no one was watching was a lot easier when no one actually was watching. Even in her extremely pregnant state, nearing nine months, she could still be found twirling around the kitchen to whatever song was playing in her head. Today was no exception, with _Crazy Little Thing Called Love_ being the main attraction. The bowl of chocolate pudding that she was making rested on her belly, which made a remarkably good table, the spoon moving around to the beat in the bowl.

A sharp, rolling pain went down Lily's back, causing her steps to falter and a hissing noise escape her lips. They'd happened a few times in the past few hours, but it was probably just the baby getting restless. "Hey, calm down in there, I'll sing a different song," She continued her steps, holding the bowl with one hand and rubbing her bump with the other. She started humming various _Beatles _songs, before an even sharper pain rocked her whole abdomen, forcing her to lean back on the wall for support.

"Hey Lily, you home? I'm starved," Sirius started looking through the house, skipping the common curtesy of knocking, as per usual. "Hey Lils- why are you on the floor?" He saw Lily slumped down on the floor, a bowl of pudding knocked on the ground.

"Oh, just enjoying the view from down here," a wet stain was forming on Lily's pants, signaling her water had just broken.

"Er, Lily? I think you have to go to the loo."

"I'm in labor, you prat!"

Sirius instantly drained of all color, looking frantically around the room for help. "I- I'll go get someone. Let's get Remus, he's good with this, maybe Peter, he'll faint, make people laugh. James! Let's get James, that's his kid after all. Shit, Lily, you're having a kid!" He started pacing, rambling on and on about what to do, while not actually doing anything.

Lily just watched on in amusement, loving the chance to see the calm, cool and collected Sirius Black reduced to a panicked mess. She almost started laughing before another pain racked through her, making her cry out. The cry made Sirius zero in on Lily, making him focus and giving him clarity. "Okay, hospital, let's go. Don't you have a bag thingy?"

"Upstairs, in the wardrobe," Lily slowly got to her feet, heading to the fireplace to floo James. She managed to maneuver her disproportionate frame to kneel in front of the emerald flames and call out, "James Potter!"

"Lily, is there something wrong?" James' head poked through the fireplace, the unexpected call from his wife putting him on guard.

"I need you to stay calm, and not come bursting through the fireplace. I need you to go to your boss and tell him you have to leave early, and that you're not coming back for a little while."

"Why? Lily, what's wrong?"

"I'm in labor." The three words rang through James, freezing him momentarily. Never one to stay still for long, he jumped into action, practically running to the Head Auror, a real hard-ass named Scrimgeour.

"I gotta leave early, I'm in labor! I mean, my wife's in labor, with my kid!" He stumbled through the words, causing a few of those around them to chuckle lightly.

"I understand Mr Potter, you may leave." James could have sworn a small smile flitted across Scimgeour's sour face, but didn't give it a second thought, already running back to the floo.

"I didn't know which bag to get, so I got them all," Sirius dumped nearly every bag Lily owned on the table, still twitching nervously and watching Lily as if she were a bomb about to go off.

Lily politely held back her laughter and grabbed her black bag among the sea of purses, thanking Sirius. A crash sounded from the living room, followed by a very exuberant James bounding into the room.

"The baby's coming? Really coming? Right now?" James was full-blown panicking, pacing and looking around with crazed eyes, entirely out of his element.

"Not this moment, no, but yes the baby will be here soon," Lily tried to sooth her husband, using her most calming voice. The effect was lessened when she doubled over again as another contraction went through her. "Not soon enough, though. Let's go to the hospital, get this thing out of me."

"Yes, hospital, that's where we should go, where's your bag?" James looked around, his eyes falling upon the mountain of bags, a puzzled expression on his face.

"I have the bag here, let's go." Lily got up and waddled to the fireplace, stepping in and yelling out, "St. Mungos!"

"AHHHHHH!" Two screams filled the air, one high-pitched and feminine, the other vaguely masculine and sounding very much in pain.

"Lily, let go of my hand, you're breaking it!" James tried to break free of the vice-like grip, but it only got tighter, and Lily only got madder.

"I will hold on as tight as I bloody well please, you ungrateful twat! I don't see you pushing a HUMAN BEING out of _your_ body!" Lily was tired, cranky, and in extreme pain. The contractions were coming one after another, barely giving her any rest in between.

"Sorry Lily, you're right, you're doing great, you're so beautiful," James kissed her forehead, wishing she didn't have to be in such pain. It killed him to see her screaming in such agony, with him so helpless to help her. She melted into him, just grateful to have him here. Before she could voice her thoughts, another contraction hit, more painful than the last. She cried out, just wanting it to be over, and have her child in her arms.

A healer came into the room, looked at Lily and announced that it was time."Okay, Mrs Potter, it's time to push. On the count of three, I want you to push as hard as you can. One, two, three!"

Lily pushed with everything she had left, James whispering encouragements in her ear, begging for this to be over.

"I see a head. You have to push again, on the count of three, one, two, three!"

Lily had nothing left to give, all her energy spent, but something in her forced her to keep going, to give one last push. She screamed and hollered, crying out to anyone who would listen, until another, much shriller cry joined hers.

"Mr and Mrs Potter, I'd like you to meet your son," he held up a squirming pink shape with a shock of black hair, crying out for the world to hear.

"A boy. Lily, we have a boy," James looked on in awe at the little baby, his son, the most beautiful thing he has ever seen. A woman came in and washed him off, then swathed him in a blue blanket, handing him off to James.

Emerald green eyes searched the room, trying to take everything in. He had stopped crying the moment James held him, looking up towards his father. James looked down at his son, tears leaking from his eyes as he looked down at his baby boy. "Hey little guy, I'm your daddy." He leaned down and kissed his forehead before passing him to Lily, who was openly weeping.

"I'm your mommy, and we love you very, very much." The little bundle just blinked, looking at Lily evenly, identical eyes meeting one another.

"Is it okay to come in now? No chance of murder or removal of man-bits?" Sirius cautiously stepped into the room, his gaze falling upon three crying figures. "Hey, no crying this is a happy thing. So, do I have a little man to corrupt or dozens of boys to beat off?"

"It's a boy. A beautiful, healthy baby boy," Lily never took her eyes off of him, amazed at her little miracle.

"Yes! The marauder legacy continues!" Sirius looked like Christmas had come early, ready to break out in song and dance.

"You want to hold him?" Lily, while slightly reluctant to give up her baby, held him up to Sirius.

"Er, you sure? I don't want to drop him…" He nonetheless made an awkward cradle with his arms, making sure to support his head. "Damn, he definitely got Prongs' hair."

"He's lucky to have it, the ladies love it, right Lily?" James indignantly replied.

"Of course I love it, but how will I ever run a brush through our sons head?" Lily looked to her son, already fretting over ways to try and tame the untamable Potter hair.

"You'll be fine, won't you little guy?" Sirius began cooing down at the small bundle in his arms, already in love. Lily and James looked to each other before nodding and turning as one to Sirius.

"Padfoot, will you be his godfather?"

Sirius whipped his head up, clearly shocked. "Me? Godfather? Are you guys nuts? This is your kid, and you're trusting _me _with it?"

"We're not handing him over now, we just know that you're the best person for the job. Besides, we're not gonna leave soon, so you won't have to play the parent. More the fun uncle." claimed Lily.

"Fun uncle. I like that. Uncle Sirius. You guys are serious?"

"No, you're Sirius, we're James and Lily." The opportunity was too good for James to pass up, and totally worth the smack from Lily.

"Yes, Sirius, we want you to be his godfather." The little bundle reached out to Sirius, pulling on a lock of hair. Sirius looked down, tears filling his eyes. He quickly swiped them away and handed the baby back to Lily.

"Thank you, I would love to be his godfather. So what's his name gonna be?"

The two parents looked at each other, doing another silent conversation that only couples could do. Again, they nodded as one, and said, "Harry. Harry James Potter."

"Not bad, not bad. Well, Harry, I can say now, you are gonna have a great life."

A/N: Sorry it took a little longer for the update, it just wasn't coming to me. I'll try and update faster, but reviews always give me incentive :)


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